After the game, the players in the locker room were relatively subdued. They were moving on but hardly satisfied. The only mild form of bravado could be found against one of the cherry wood cabinets adjacent to the stalls, where a dingy broom rested, signifying the accomplishment. […] “Do I get anything for that?” Coach Randy Wittman joked, when asked about accomplishing a franchise first. “It doesn’t mean anything.”

“I don’t know if anybody really picked us to beat Toronto in this series especially without home-court advantage. So to go out there and not only be the underdog, but to sweep them I think it does send a message that, ‘Hey you can’t take Washington lightly,’ ” Pierce said. “We didn’t show the weaknesses that we showed during the regular season and that’s a good sign. This is a great time to be playing our best basketball and if we can continue to play like this we’re going to be a tough team to beat.”

As Wittman said after the win, the Wizards have no interest in looking back. Not only have they found themselves at the right time, but the landscape in the Eastern Conference has shifted, providing more hope about what they can accomplish. […] “We want to get to the Eastern Conference finals,” (John) Wall said.